<
https://theconversation.com/why-giving-the-commerce-commission-the-power-to-set-fair-fuel-prices-is-unfair-on-nzs-climate-targets-194250>
"The government announcement that the Commerce Commission will soon have the
power to regulate wholesale petrol and diesel prices might be good news for
cash-strapped motorists, but it’s arguably a retrograde step in the fight
against climate change.
While there is some scepticism about whether the commission will ever act to
enforce fuel price caps, any move to make carbon-emitting vehicles more
affordable must come at the expense of efforts to encourage people out of cars
and into more sustainable modes of transport.
Making matters more complicated, the policy announcement happened against the
backdrop of the critical COP27 climate meeting in Egypt, and the draft UN
report warning of soon-unreachable global warming targets. The move suggests
conflicting government priorities at best.
Aside from being counter to other plans to mitigate climate change, there is
plenty of evidence that price caps can often cause outcomes opposite to those
intended. Sometimes, leaving it to the market can be the better option."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
